Of Butterfly clips and Pocket Watches
by KylieCreations
Summary: Maria struggles to select something special to give to each of the children on the day she and Georg get married; and ends up remembering all the reasons she fell in love with the children in the process.
1. The Shop

**A/N:** I was writing a fic for another fandom and this jumped into my head. I can't finish that fic until I get this out, so it's like a two for one. Haha. I have a limited supply of internet right now, so I didn't get to do the research I would have liked to for this. I'm hoping that when I top up my internet, I'll have time to go back and fill some really accurate details. Ah, and now on with the show.

**Summary:** There's so much written about the days leading up to the wedding, and how Georg and Maria are getting ready for it. Most focus on the marriage between the two of them, and it occurred to me that Maria didn't just marry Georg, she married seven children as well. And I just wanted to do a little some to acknowledge that, because I feel like Maria would have. Oh and my description or lack their of, of the jewelery store is this: I like to have a less is more/see what you'd like to see approach. I see the shop as say, a small little mom and pop store, with pictures on the wall and the likes. And I also see a bit of thrift store decorations, trinkets. Just something out there, but charming and beautiful. Like our beloved Fraulein.

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><p><strong>Of Butterlfy clips and Pocket Watches<strong>

"It's this one, right?" She asked, looking over her shoulder at him.

He nodded, a soft smile tilting his lips. Her eyes shined bright, and her smile was even brighter. Her excitement was palpable and while he didn't see the necessity of their current activity, he couldn't help but enjoy her happiness.

She tugged at their joined hands and excitedly pulled him through the door.

He knew the reaction she'd have when she entered, that's why he'd picked this shop over all of others in town.

It was around a corner, two streets off the main road. It was far smaller than it's counterparts, but was far more charming than of the others. He'd found it by accident; as he wandered about the city center, exasperated at his inability to find a suitable ring for Maria. The moment he'd walked in, he'd no doubt that he was going to find her ring within its walls.

"However did you find this?" She beamed, eyes meeting and leaving his quickly as she took in the shop.

It was eclectic, if that was the right word. The décor was almost earthy, woodsy, homey even. He couldn't describe it. He could only feel it. And clearly so could Maria.

"Captain von Trapp," The young woman behind the counter greeted, eyes quickly going to Maria. "You must be Maria," She smiled, holing out her hand. "Eleanore Scharter."

Maria's eyes drifted between the woman and Georg, not at all understanding how this woman could possibly know her name.

He shrugged and offered her a sly smile. "Someone may have gotten a bit of an earful while I looked at rings."

Maria laughed. "I hope it was all good things."

"Oh yes," She nodded. "He practically couldn't contain himself once he selected your ring," Her face twisted as she considered why they might have returned. "Is something wrong with the ring? Let me get my father. I..."

"The ring is perfect," Maria replied quickly.

"We're here for the children," Georg told her, moving closer to Maria and the display cases she seemed so fascinated with.

"Oh?" Eleanore inquired. "There were...seven?"

Maria nodded. "Five girls and two boys."

"Maria would like to select something she can give each of them on our wedding day," Georg said with a knowing smile. There was utterly no reason for her to do this. His children adored her and would easily transition from her being their governess to their mother. She insisted however, wanting them to know how grateful she was for each of them. He assumed it was also her way of showing them, that while things would change, the feelings they inspired in one another never would.

"What a lovely idea," Eleanore concluded, "Would you like to give them each something different? The same for all the girls? And something the same for the boys?"

Maria sighed and her eyes went quickly to meet Georg's.

He offered her a playful smile and wrung his hands. "I selected your ring, darling, My job here is done."

Maria looked back at Eleanore, still confused at where to begin. There were sweet and delicately jeweled butterfly clips before her. Pendant necklaces to her right, and silver bracelets to her left. She'd even taken note of a selection of pocket watches near in the case near the door. Where was she to begin?

"Hmm, well perhaps if you tell me a little about each child I can help you make a decision?"

"Yes," Maria nodded. "That would be a great help."

"Alright, lets start with the girls. I think they'll be easier to buy for."

"Alright," She started, "well there's Lisel, she's the oldest..."

**To be continued**

_****S. Scharter is the name under the name of a shop in Do, Ray, Me, montage. So I borrowed it. _


	2. The Girls

**A/N:** I was surprised that Lisel was the hardest to write about. We saw a little less of her personality than the others, I think. I mean, she was a great big sister, she loved Rolfe, and she had vivid memories of life before marching and uniforms. But really, there wasn't much else about her. So I struggled a little there, but this is the part I liked most of the three times I rewrote it.

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><p><strong>Part II: The Girls<br>**

"Alright," Maria started, "well there's Lisel, she's the oldest. She's sixteen and hardly thinks she needs a governess," Maria smiled softly, her mind wandering back to that first night in her room, when Lisel had let her guard down just enough to let Maria get close. "She was the first to trust me. Even just a little. And I've enjoyed every second of getting to know her. She's a wonderful eldest sibling. I've seen her put the younger children ahead of herself many times. With everything she's been through, no one could blame her for seeing the world as a dark, miserable place, but she doesn't. She really doesn't. She believes in forgiveness, in love, and romance, and all that's good in people," She beamed now, mind racing with thoughts of Lisel in a year, or two, or five, and the wonderful young woman she was going to be. "She's turning into such a fine young lady. I'm already proud of the woman I know she's to become," She cast her eyes quickly to Georg, who's face was unreadable. The idea of Lisel becoming a woman was a hard thought for him to process, but she was doing her best to try and help.

Eleanore nodded, her smile bright as she listened. "She's very lucky to have a friend in you."

"I'm lucky to have a friend in her," Maria countered. "We've learned so much from one another."

Georg listen raptly, eyes on Maria's profile as she spoke. He couldn't see into her eyes, but he knew they were as wide as the smile she talked through. Her hands moved excitedly as she spoke, and she bounced just slightly on her feet. It was something he'd come to learn in the weeks since they'd gotten engaged; she did when she was so happy, she could feel it in her soul. She had always captivated him, however, seeing the love and joy radiate from her as she spoke of his children, made him fall in love with her all over again.

"...Louisa, well, I would say she's the most like me," Maria laughed at the irony of the statement, seeing as none of the children were biologically related to her, after all. "I mean... she can climb a tree a full ten seconds faster than I can. And she can run faster, too," She was hardly stopping to take breaths as she spoke, the words spilling out excitedly. "She's got a great sense of humor, though she has to really trust you show it. It took her the longest to trust me, but there isn't a day that passes now, where we don't lose a large part of the day to conversation. And you know, as much as she loves climbing trees, bugs, and snakes..." Maria shuddered at the image of Louisa presenting her a snake she'd caught out in the yard. How she managed that, Maria didn't ask, instead she shrieked in fear, while she behind her fiance. "I think she'd love one of those hair clips. It's just delicate enough that she'd feel beautiful but not ornate enough to impede her tree climbing or bug catching."

Of all his children, Louisa was the one who had changed the most since Maria's arrival. She was the quiet one, the one who kept it all inside. Ducked away from her brothers and sisters, to climb a tree or catch spiders, when it all became to much. He'd see them smile occasionally, in those horrible days before Maria, but never Louisa. Now? He'd have to nearly have to pry her from Maria, and some conversation they'd be lost in. He saw her smile daily, and her eyes - those gorgeous eyes she inherited from Agathe - brimmed with life.

"Brigitta," She was saying, "she might be only ten, but she notices everything. And she's not afraid to tell you what she notices," Maria shook her head, and laughed a little.

"She also reminds me of someone," Georg commented with a knowing smile.

"Oh yes," Maria confirmed, "that's very much like me as well. That's probably why we get along so well," She was almost rambling in how fast she spoke, in how excited the words sounded when they fell from lips. She adored these children and couldn't hide the fact. "It takes time to earn her trust, but once you have it, she can make you laugh until you can hardly breathe. And she's so smart; probably from all of those books she reads. I don't have to worry about bugs and snakes with her, seeing she'd rather spend her days with a good book. I do wonder what those books are going to teach her, and if it's for better or worse. She's taken a liking to romance based stories, and I worry that her teenager years are going to give us gray hair," She smiled, eyes flicking to a nodding Georg.

"I already have a few," He laughed shaking his head. "But she's worth it."

"Oh yes," Maria nodded, "She most certainty is."

He wondered if she would ever know how grateful he was to her, for her.

"Marta is seven," Maria was saying, "Seven is such a fun age. She's our proper little girl, I think. Pink this, and pink that and I see no sign of that changing soon. She can climb a mean tree, though," She continued, lost in her thoughts of the sweet girl who had tugged on her dress to tell her of her impending birthday. "Really, she's so sweet and trusting. She's learning to speak up, and hold her own with her sisters and brothers," She was so proud of Marta, and the way she was coming into her own; exercising her spirit and asserting herself into a family it was easy to get lost in. "She's gotten so much more confident in the last few weeks, and it's been a joy watching her find her voice," Her eyes shot to Georg's again, and she finally stopped to take a breath. The force of his gaze, taking her breath away.

"That's all thanks to you, my dear." He would be lost without her; and he didn't think she would ever realize just how much he needed her.

She flashed him her brightest smile, and took a deep breath. Steadying her heart before continuing. It was almost overwhelming when she thought of it, spoke of it. Her love for him, for the children, it could take her breath away if she let it. "Ah, Gretl," She said though a proud laugh, "She's the youngest and only five. She's our enigma, our little mystery waiting to unfold. There's so much love and sweetness in her...I wouldn't know how to start my mornings any longer, without a hug from her. I see hints of her sisters in her as well. She can be quick to speak her mind, and I've seen Louisa in the garden showing her how to collect spiders," She shivered at the image; she still worried she was going to find a jar of them somewhere in the villa. "And I've referreed she and Marta arguing over the only pink hair tie they can find," She was lost in the thought of who this little girl was going to become. Who she was going to grow up to be and she was honored that she got to be there to watch. "I so look forward to watching her grow."

She stopped to take a breath, and caught sight of the smile Eleanore was flashing her. "Oh I must sound like a crazy person, carrying on like this."

Eleanore shook her head before Maria could say anymore. "I think," She started, "that you absolutely adore those girls. They're lucky to have you."

"Oh no," She shook her head firmly, "I'm the lucky one."

Eleanore nodded. "Well," She started, eyes drifting between Maria and the Captain, "I think I have just the thing for your girls. But why don't you tell me about the boys first, so we can gather everything all at once."

"The boys," Maria laughed a little, nodding. "The boys are a handful, but I wouldn't want to go a day without them."

**To be continued**


	3. The Boys

**A/N:** The changes in the boys during the course of the movie stood out to me. I always go back to the scene when they're running to Maria on her return from the Abbey, and those boy are running just as fast as the girls. And their smiles are just as bright. I hope I captured some of that.

The last part will be the gifts! Stay tuned.

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><p><strong>Part III: The Boys<strong>

"The boys," Maria laughed a little, nodding. "The boys are a handful, but I wouldn't want to go a day without them." It was true, some days the two boys drove her far more crazy than all five of the girls together, but she would be the first to admit she loved it. And them.

"They're probably more responsible for the gray hairs," Georg teased, and Maria nodded through a laugh.

"They're good boys," She started, "They're just all boy. Though, Frederich would probably stop speaking to me for days if he heard me refer to him as a boy."

"Would that be all bad?" Georg asked, tossing her a playful. He adored watching her with the girls, but watching her parent the boys was an utter treat. She could bring out the best of both of them without even trying. He wondered if Frederich talked as much in his whole life as he had in the months since Maria had found them. And Kurt, well Kurt adored her and was never far from her side. The confidence that both boys exuded since she'd arrived in their lives, astounded him. It was amazing the difference love, laughter and family did to those boys self esteems.

He wondered if the right words existed to tell her of his gratitude for loving his children so completely.

"He's fourteen going on eighteen," Maria started, with a laugh, "or so he thinks. I've been trying to convince him that growing up isn't all it's made out to be, but it seems to fall one deaf ears," She continued. "He's more like his father than he realizes," She said, eyes on her Georg now. "He's smart and very keen to world around him. He already knows what he'd like to study at university and what he's going to do with his studies. You have to work to be close to him, though, and he's so used having to keep his feelings to himself, that sometimes it's like breaking down a wall. But he's learning to let his guard down and enjoy life a little more. He'd like to think he's ready to handle all the things that come with being a man, but he's much more content in the yard or playing ball with Kurt," She smiled at the memory of them in the back garden, playing some kind of horrible game where the goal was to not get hit with the ball, the other was hurling at him. They were rolling with laughter and howling with delight. She would never understand how something like that could be fun, but she loved seeing their smiles. "He's already far more confident in himself then he was at the beginning of the summer," She added, "When he discovers girls, we're going to be trouble, I think," She smiled at Eleanore now, her words and heart moving a mile a minute as she imagined the years to come. "I see such good things in his future." He was going to be a fine young man. He was going to excel and achieve and he was going to do so with the same smooth confidence his father had, even if it took him time to grow into it.

Eleanore nodded, having brothers of her own. "It sounds like you've got your work cut out for you, and even more like you're going to love every minute of it."

"Oh, I already am," She nodded. "He and Kurt are definitely different to raise than the girls."

"You really don't even have to buy Kurt anything. We can just stop and buy him a months worth of Wiener Schnitzel and he'll be more than happy." Georg teased.

"That is a thought," Maria laughed, "but I think I'm excited for the challenge of picking out the right gift for Kurt," She told them both. "Besides the bottomless pit that is his stomach," She started, "He's a delight to be around. His sense of humor never ceases to amaze me or fails to make my sides hurt from laughing. You have to watch and listen to him carefully as he doesn't flaunt it, he's quite bright and has been known to engage Frederich in very meaningful conversation," She continued, "He's probably the easiest of the children to be close too. He has very little trouble telling you what's going on in that cute little head of his," She was all smiles. Mind drifting back to the previous week when they'd been in town on a shopping trip and Kurt had run up excitedly to show her the book he'd found. It was jokes and magic tricks, and he was convinced that he could master them all in day. She'd laughed and bet him double or nothing on dessert that night, that it couldn't be done. And of course made him promise that there would be no glue on toothbrushes, snakes ore bugs anywhere near his siblings. She'd been rewarded with a hug and excited ramblings of the tricks to come. "There's such life in his soul and so much of his father in his spirit," She said, excited by the visions she was conjuring up of a grown Kurt and his own children. "I'm truly intrigued to watch him grow."

"I know you say you're the lucky one, Maria," Eleanore started, "but I think those children are extraordinarily lucky to have you in their lives."

"We all are," Georg commented, eyes on Maria. "I'm not sure the words exist to explain how lucky we are to have her."

Maria smiled softly at him, lost in his eyes. Alright, so they were all lucky and blessed to have each other. She could accept that.

"Sounds like everything has worked out as it was meant too," Eleanore nodded. "Now, how about we select those gifts."

"I hope you know where to begin, I'm still not sure," Maria sighed, and Eleanore nodded and tipped her head toward a display case behind Maria.

"I think I know exactly what you're looking for," She motioned for them to follow her to the case, so she could show them exactly what it was she had in mind.

**To be continued**


	4. The Gifts

**A/N: **Right so I own one necklace, two or three bracelets, and four pairs of earrings (because I have two piercings in each ear). I don't know jewelery and don't pretend too. I'm suffering from a horrible lack of internet as I said at the start, to the research I want to do simply can't be done right now. So this what you get.

I wanted the gifts to be normal in thought and in terms of their existence in the time period, but I wanted to make them a little bit out of the ordinary. Hope this works.

Notes at the bottom why I chose to have them say what they say when Maria decides to engrave them.

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><p><strong>Part IV: The Gifts<strong>

"I like to call this our eclectic display," Eleanore laughed as Maria and Captain von Trapp turned their eyes on the case in front of them. "This is actually my father's case," She started, "I mean he's made or at least tinkered with almost everything in it."

"Tinkered?" Georg asked raising a curious eyebrow at her.

"You'll see," She nodded through a knowing smile. "Now, lets start with Lisel. I had something specific in mind," She started, eyes on the case in front of her, "Where was it..." She nodded at spotting the piece, "After everything you said about Lisel, I just had to show you this."

Maria nodded, eyes on the necklace Eleanore was placing in her hands. "Oh it's beautiful," She breathed. It really was. It was delicate silver chain, with a sterling silver heart charm in the middle. It was light, and would move with Lisel, grow with her as it had just the right air of youth and sophistication. "I can see this on her," Maria nodded. "It's so simple and delicate. Lisel wouldn't be comfortable in something more ornate," Her eyes were on the necklace and her words weren't directed at either of them. She was just talking Musing. Loving every minute of thinking about how much Lisel was going to love the necklace.

Eleanore nodded. "I thought you might like it." She took the necklace back, and set it aside. "Now who's next, Louisa isn't it? You thought she'd love one of the butterfly hair clips, but I think she'd like this one much better," She pointed to the dark copper hair clip just in front of Maria.

Maria's eyes moved from the hair clip to meet Georg's who shrugged back at her with a knowing smile. "It's shaped like a...like a spider?" She half asked, half said, delighted by the piece, whatever it was.

Eleanore laughed amused, and shrugged. "I don't think that was my father's intention. I imagine it was a butterfly gone array. But sometimes when he creates, things get a little out of hand, so it's hard to say."

"It looks just like a spider," Maria nodded, happily. The intention may not have been a spider, but it was a spider as far as she was concerned. She wondered how the darker edges, and seeming shadows of the legs were worked onto the piece, and how something so beautiful could have been made in error. "She'll never take it out of hair," Maria laughed, eyes on Georg. "And none of the other girls will want to wear it," She laughed. "It really is perfect."

The joy in her smile, the light in her eyes almost took his breath away. He had always known that his children needed a mother, and at one time any woman...though her really had cared for Elsa...seemed as though she would suffice. Now, he realized it wasn't a mother they needed. It was Maria. It was her smile. Her laughter. And her unbridled love and adoration for them that they needed.

"I'm glad you like it. My father will be happy that someone enjoyed his vision," Eleanore told them.

"Your father is very talented," Georg mused, while Eleanore opened the case to show Maria another piece.

"I believe this one was to have been a three inch wide, bronze bracelet, that was meant to cap off that collection over there," Eleanore pointed to a case near the door. "As you can see, it never made it that far."

"Oh, it's a bookmark," Maria exclaimed. "It's perfect." She didn't say for what girl, she didn't have too. Eleanore had known who it was prefect for, before she had even shown it.

"My father can't throw anything away," Eleanore said, seeing the questioning look in the Captain's eyes. "So he soddered this piece into a fine bookmark."

Maria held the piece, testing it's weight in her hands. It was just light enough that it could hold the place in any book, but strong enough to ensure that Brigitta never missed a page of those romance novels she was so fond of. "She's going to love it. And it will be hard to lose; she losses so many." She could already see this bookmark sticking out of the edge of War and Peace - Georg wouldn't allow her to read it until her next birthday, though she still asked to read it every other week - as she excitedly opened the book to read a passage to them and her brothers and sisters.

Elenore nodded. "Three children down already. You're knowing them so well has made this selection so easy." Her words drawing Maria from her thoughts.

Maria smiled fondly. Eleanore's idea to tell her about the children had been a great one. It was easy to see the gifts in the case, and know within a second of laying eyes on them what piece should go to what child.

"It was just as easy for him to find your ring," Eleanore said, "Once I got him to tell me even the smallest thing about you, the rest was like magic. He went right to it."

Georg nodded, his eyes on Maria. "I didn't talk nearly as long," He teased, but Eleanore nodded and laughed.

"I was here all afternoon listening to him, and that was before I even showed him the rings," She teased, moving behind the counter so she could show them the next piece.

Maria laughed, "Was it a good story, at least?"

"The best," Eleanore nodded, "I'm so happy that I got to meet you. You're just as wonderful as he described you to be." It was delight to watch them, listen to them. She encountered many engaged couples over the course of her days at the shop, but none would stay with her quite like these two. "Now, for Marta and Gretl I'm afraid we don't have much to choose from," She told them with an apologetic smile. Her father created and tinkered with a great many things, but the demand for jewelery small enough for seven and five year old, wasn't enough for even her father to dabble in.

Maria nodded, happy chose from whatever Eleanore had available.

"These were made for two young attendants to wear in a wedding," Eleanore started, pointing to the bracelets in the case, "Unfortunately the wedding never happened."

"They're gorgeous," Maria nodded, eyes on the two smaller silver bracelets Eleanore was pointing out. "And they're the identical."

"One less thing for them to argue over," Georg confirmed. "I think they're just small enough."

"The clasps are adjustable, so they can probably wear them well into their teens," Eleanore told them, "When I think of the way you described them, Maria, I can see them in these..."

"They'll feel like princesses," Maria nodded back on a soft breath. She didn't have to try hard to imagine the smiles on their faces when they saw the bracelets. They'd twirl in their best dresses and ask if they looked like princesses. "They don't have anything like this," Maria started, "I think they're going to love them."

"I know they will," Georg assured her. The thought behind these gifts was enough to make them the most incredible gifts his children could receive, but the care and thought she was putting into choosing just the right piece for each child, made his heart swell with love.

"I'm almost afraid to ask what you have in mind for the boys," Maria joked, running a finger over the spider hair clip that was set aside for Louisa.

"Well, I'm afraid what I thought of for Frederich might a little boring compared to the gifts for the girls," Eleanore acknowledged, "but then I remembered my father telling me that all young men want a strong, dependable pocket watch...just like their own fathers had," She finished, having already removed the watch from the case.

It was a normal pocket watch. Set in the same copper as all the others. It looked the same on the inside too. It looked strong, and dependable The kind any young man would want to carry.

"He's wanted one for years," Georg told them, "You have one Father...Uncle Max has one, Father...why can't I have one, Father?" He mimicked, "I think it's time he be allowed to have one."

Maria beamed at him, having already seen the image of Frederich out in the yard, attempting to round up his reluctant brothers and sisters for dinner so they wouldn't be even a second late, his pocket watch in hand as he meticulously checked the time. "He's going to drive the rest of the children crazy with this," Maria laughed. "I'll be getting constant complaints about him using it to try and keep the rest in line."

"The perfect balance of still being a boy and learning to be a man," Eleanore nodded, setting the watch off to the side with the rest of the selections. "I have just the thing for Kurt," Eleanore exclaimed clapping her hands together excitedly. "It's my favorite piece in the entire store and ever since you described Kurt I've felt as though he will enjoy it as much as I do."

Georg and Maria exchanged a curious glance, and then turned excited eyes on Eleanore.

She held out the piece for Maria to inspect.

"A compass?" Maria asked, eyes meeting Eleanore's in confusion.

"Open it," She told them, her tone light and playful.

"Oh," Maria breathed after a slight pause to take it in.

"I've seen one of these before," Georg mentioned and Eleanore nodded.

"It's the last of set of six that my father made."

"How did he ever?" Maria asked, intrigued. She had never in her life seen a transparent compass. All the proper pieces, lines and the dial where where they were meant to be, but it was completely transparent. You could see straight through to the backside. It was magnificent.

"I give him ten minutes before he's trying to take it apart and put it back together again," Georg laughed.

"Oh if he does, you'll have to bring him back, let my father see. He would love that."

Maria was lost in thought. Kurt would spend hours looking at the compass; studying the way it all worked together. And then he would announce that he could create something similar. His brothers and sisters would laugh, but she'd find him later, studying it under one of the bright lights in Georg's study. He might be their inventor or their actor, perhaps a bit of both. "He's going to drive us mad with this," Maria said, proudly.

Georg nodded. "As usual with anything Kurt takes a fancy to."

"I'm almost sad we're finished," Eleanore said, motioning to the complete set of gifts on the counter in front of them.

"Thank you so much," Maria breathed, "they are all perfect."

"It's been my pleasure," Eleanore nodded. "Oh, they can all be engraved if you'd like. Is there anything special you might like to put on them?"

Maria paused for a moment, and then shook her head. "Oh no, I couldn't possibly. That would be far to expensive."

"Money is of no concern," Georg countered almost instantly. "Whatever Maria wants them to say, they'll say."

Eleanore nodded and looked at Maria, who's eyes were locked on Georg's.

He hoped she'd learn once they were married that anything that was his, was hers. She had no qualms about being mother to his seven children, she even seemed to be warming up to the idea that she would be Mistress of the entire villa, but she didn't seem able to reconcile that his money was to be her money. His money of simply of no matter to her. How had he earned the privilege of getting to love her?

"Your wedding date might be nice," Eleanore offered with a shrug.

Maria shook her head. That didn't feel right. Those were just numbers.

"The date of your arrival into our lives," Georg added, eyes on her profile. He watched her face contort as she thought it through. Her smile curved up to a slight scowl, and her nose wrinkled. He laughed at the sight. She was exquisite.

"No that's not right," Maria said with a sigh. "Dates are just numbers, they don't mean anything. I want the children to have the gifts and feel special. I want them to look at them and know that they are special, they are that wonderful, that they can do absolutely anything," She finished, and eyes flicked quickly, as it dawned on her just what she wanted their gifts to be engraved with.

He didn't know what she was going apt to say, but the smile on her face was the likes one he'd only seen one other time - the night in the gazebo when he'd proposed.

"_With the sound of music_," Maria told Eleanore confidently. "I want them to say, "_with the sound of music."_

Elenore nodded, but her face was filled with confusion.

"Have you ever been up into the hills?" Maria asked, "Listened to the sound of the birds? And the lakes ? And the trees? It's music and it fills your heart with happiness," She continued, with a knowing smile. She wanted those words to be the start of the sentence, with the rest there for each child to fill in. With the Sound of Music, what? What could they do? What would they do? As long as the remember to listen to the sounds of the music all around them, they would always be able to find happiness and draw strength. "Music can breath life into your soul..."

"And open your heart to love," Georg added, eyes drinking in Maria. Only she could could capture it all in five simple words.

"Yes," Maria nodded, "with the sound of music by your side, you can find the strength to do anything."

Eleanore nodded. "With the sound of music it is," She smiled happily at them, reaching for a pen so Maria could write it down exactly as she liked. "I'll have them all ready for you tomorrow. My father will have the bill ready as well."

"Oh thank you," Maria grinned reaching across the counter to shake Eleanore's hand. "The children are going to love their gifts."

"Not nearly as much as they love you," Eleanore added, the feelings between the entire family as transparent as that compass of Kurt's. "It was a pleasure to meet you, and to see you again, Captain. Have a wonderful wedding day!"

Georg shook her hand and then reached for Maria's. "Shall we, darling?"

She nodded, and tugged at his hand, leading him toward the doorway. "I don't suppose we could stop and get something to eat?"

"We already ate," He laughed shaking his head, "Kurt must be wearing off on you."

"Ha ha ha," She laughed as the door closed behind them.

They would return tomorrow, pick up the gifts, and try to hold in their excitement at giving them for another two weeks. And while they could hardly wait to see their faces as they tore through the wrapping, it was the other gift they would getting that day that excited them more.

A family. All nine of them. Finally happy.

It was amazing what you could do and feel, with the sound of music following through your life.

**_The End_**

* * *

><p><em>***I really struggled with what I wanted the engraving to be. And the I just took a deep breath and it came to me (makes sense in my head anyway). That why I chose to have the gifts read, "With the Sound of Music" because that's basically the theme of the movie. Look what was possible because of the sound of music (filling the house, the hills, etc). The almost literal mountains that Maria moved with music. I kind of see "With the Sound of Music" being the start of a sentence for each kid to decide how they complete it.<em>


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